


bursting at the seams

by marmolita



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: First Kiss, First Time, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Getting Together, Humor, Love Confessions, M/M, Misunderstandings, Oblivious Prompto Argentum, Romance, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, this is possibly the fluffiest thing I've ever written
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-09
Updated: 2018-04-09
Packaged: 2019-04-20 11:16:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,654
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14259780
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/marmolita/pseuds/marmolita
Summary: The thing is, being around Prompto isfun.  It's always been fun, but now that everything's gone to shit, Noctis needs it more than ever.  And when they're goofing around at the camp site, or laughing over a picture of Gladio sitting with Kenny Crow, or high-fiving after a successful hunt, he feelsgood.  He can forget about all the bad parts of life for a while and instead just relax, only troubled by thoughts likewere Prompto's eyes always that blue?andwas his grin always so cute?





	bursting at the seams

**Author's Note:**

> The working title of this fic was "some promptis garbage" because this is the most ridiculous, ridiculous fluff. There is nothing even remotely questionable in content in this fic.
> 
> Title from Carrie Underwood's "This Time," which is super cute and super promptis. You'll recognize a couple scenes (and dialogue) from canon!

"So you really think I'm doing okay?" Prompto asks.

It's not like Noctis doesn't know about Prompto's concerns and his issues with self-confidence -- he's been his best friend for five years, after all, and he remembers what Prompto was like back in elementary school as well. When he asked Prompto to come along on this trip, despite not being trained like Ignis and Gladio, he knew he might struggle. But he invited him anyway, because he wanted to have a friend who didn't have any hangups about royal duties, given that this whole trip is one big royal duty.

"Yeah, I do," he says, smiling at Prompto. "Anything else?" While they're having a heart-to-heart, Noctis figures he might as well encourage him to get it all off his chest at once. Prompto is generally pretty free with his feelings, but always in a self-deprecating sort of way; it's not usually as direct as this is.

"Actually, there is one more thing." Prompto jiggles his foot, a nervous habit Noctis is very familiar with. "I, uh. You know that I was really happy for you, for the wedding, right? I guess I don't know if it's still happening, with everything that's going on, but..." He stops, intentionally huffing out his breath, like he's bracing himself. "I mean, ever since it was announced I've been happy for you, but also . . . kinda jealous?"

Noctis frowns. The wedding? He has no idea whether it's still on, since those fuckers blew the treaty to smithereens along with the rest of Insomnia. "Jealous? That I was getting married?" Prompto never seemed to have any interest in weddings, though come to think of it he's always been eager to hear anything Noctis has to say about Luna. "Do you . . . do you have a crush on Luna?"

Prompto lets out a sharp bark of laughter. "No, idiot," he says fondly, then hesitates and looks away. ". . . I have a crush on _you_."

"You-- what?"

"Forget it, it's no big deal," Prompto says, shrugging and hopping to his feet. "I'm sorry I got so _real_ all of a sudden. Seriously, though, thanks for making time for me. Feels good to get all that off my chest."

Noctis can only blink up at him, caught in the whiplash of this swift transition from a completely unexpected confession of-- of _feelings_ , to the usual bro banter. "Uh, happy to hear it," he says awkwardly.

"Alright!" Prompto says with a grin. "I'm gonna keep on keeping on, the only way I know how." He walks back into the stairwell, leaving Noctis alone on the roof to try to put the pieces of his brain back together.

". . . you do that," he mutters, staring after him.

***

Nothing changes, but somehow _everything_ changes. 

Noctis spent his whole life avoiding romantic entanglements, fully aware that a political marriage was in his future. When the treaty terms included his marriage to Luna, he was glad that at least it would be a woman he knew and loved. Maybe he didn't have a romantic relationship with her, but the possibility was there -- he already loved her, and he thought he could fall _in love_ with her easily, given time.

Then Insomnia fell, the treaty was a sham, and Luna was rumored to be dead. Noctis stopped thinking about love, romance, marriage, or anything of the sort, and eventually he was just glad to find out that Luna was _alive_.

Now, though, it's all flipped around in his head. There's no reason to believe he's still expected to marry Luna. The guys expect it, because the guys know that he cares about her, but it occurs to him that as a king without a country, the idea of a political marriage may no longer be relevant to him at all. He could, conceivably, be with whoever he wants.

They're probably all going to die anyway. Hell, Ignis had to use two phoenix downs on him just yesterday when they got caught out at night and ended up facing down a red giant. If they hadn't stocked up on them Noctis would be dead right now. What are the chances he's going to live long enough to end the war, fulfill whatever destiny he's fated to, rebuild a country, and then need to make a political marriage?

So there it is, a truth that didn't occur to him until last night, listening to the sound of Prompto's footsteps descending on the stairs: he's free, at least when it comes to love. And Prompto's put himself out there as an option.

***

It's little things at first. They take a side trip to the chocobo post, and Noctis feels warm inside at how excited Prompto is about it. He always feels warm inside when he does something that makes Prompto happy, but he never thought about why before. When they head for the camper, Prompto says, "Ready to rumble, Noct?" and for a moment Noctis is assaulted by the inappropriate mental image of taking Prompto to bed with him. "Noct? You okay?" Prompto asks, and Noctis recovers and says, "Yeah, King's Knight?"

The thing is, being around Prompto is _fun_. It's always been fun, but now that everything's gone to shit, Noctis needs it more than ever. And when they're goofing around at the camp site, or laughing over a picture of Gladio sitting with Kenny Crow, or high-fiving after a successful hunt, he feels _good_. He can forget about all the bad parts of life for a while and instead just relax, only troubled by thoughts like _were Prompto's eyes always that blue?_ and _was his grin always so cute?_

It's during one of these moments, when Noctis is idly watching Prompto play with his camera and thinking how the light of the campfire makes his skin glow, that he realizes suddenly _he's_ being watched too. Turning his head, he sees Ignis looking at him, and his cheeks heat up as if he's been caught doing something he shouldn't. But he hasn't done anything at all, has he?

He pulls out his phone and starts scrolling through his apps, trying to distract himself by deciding whether to play a game or put on some music. He's just decided on music and started digging in his pocket for his headphones when his phone vibrates with an incoming message.

_[Ignis] would you like me to make sure you and Prompto have some time alone tomorrow?_

Noctis blinks down at the message, then blushes harder. He glances up at Prompto, who's still entirely focused on his camera, then at Ignis, who smiles at him encouragingly.

He considers turning his phone off and going straight to sleep. But he knows Ignis is trying to help, not just to tease, so instead he types back, _do you think I'll still need to have a political marriage?_ He peeks at Ignis briefly, long enough to see that Ignis is frowning down at his phone.

_[Ignis] I don't know_  
_[Ignis] I suppose it depends whether or not you succeed at fulfilling the prophecy_

Noctis sighs. He doesn't want to think about the prophecy, not when he's been doing such a good job of shoving all his emotions down deep enough that he doesn't have to deal with them. Maybe he should go to bed after all. He's about to, when his phone vibrates again.

_[Ignis] if you want my advice, I don't think it's worth giving up your current happiness for the sake of an unknown future_

Noctis stares at his phone for a long time, then looks at Prompto again. He's suddenly nervous. It's one thing to imagine the possibility of being with Prompto, but it's another thing to think about making it a reality. He bites his lip, then shoots off one more text to Ignis before shutting his phone off and crawling into the tent.

_[Noctis] I have no idea what I'm doing_

***

They drive to Lestallum to turn in their hunts and catch up with Iris. It's hot, and Gladio's already taken off his shirt. The rest of them have shed their jackets, but Noctis is kind of envious of Prompto's tank top that probably keeps him cooler than his own black tee. Or maybe he's just admiring the way it looks on him. Probably both. They wander down an alleyway and stop to look at some graffiti on the wall, which reads, _DIS TOWN IZ 2 HOT 4 U_.

"2 hot 4 u," Prompto says with a grin.

"You can say that again," Noctis replies, eyeing the musculature of Prompto's arms. Maybe Prompto will take the hint that Noctis is flirting with him, and then . . . he doesn't know what happens then, but hopefully something good.

Instead, Prompto says, "I know right? I'm roasting out here. Let's get back to the Leville where we can at least turn on a fan or something." 

Behind him, Noctis can hear Ignis sigh.

***

"Hey Prompto, you want to go get some dinner with me? Maybe some skewers?" Noctis asks that evening, trying not to be nervous. Asking him out on a date shouldn't be scary when Prompto literally told him that he had feelings for him, and yet somehow he's got butterflies in his stomach.

"Oh yeah! Sure!" Prompto says, and Noctis is momentarily relieved. But then he continues, "Iggy? Gladio? You guys wanna go get skewers with us?"

Noctis meets Ignis's eyes, and Ignis seems to immediately catch what's going on. "Ah, thank you for the offer, but Gladio and I have plans with Iris."

"We do?" Gladio asks, looking up from his book. "I thought--"

"Yes, we do," Ignis interrupts, and Gladio frowns at him briefly, then shrugs.

Noctis hopes desperately that he doesn't look as embarrassed as he feels when he says, "Come on, let's go," and leads Prompto out of the hotel room.

It's a little easier to relax when it's just the two of them, debating the merits of each game in the Assassin's Creed series while they walk down to the plaza. There's a crowd out tonight, milling around amongst the stalls under the glow of the streetlights. Noctis breathes in deeply, then reaches out and takes Prompto's hand as they step into the crowd.

His hand is warm, and there's a flutter in Noctis's chest when he doesn't immediately pull away. They hold hands while they thread their way through the crowd, and Noctis feels like his heart might beat out of his chest. He steals a glance at Prompto, who smiles back at him. It strikes him again exactly how much he has no clue what he's doing. Expecting an arranged marriage his whole life, he's never even considered how to go about romancing someone, or how any of it works at all. Sure, he's seen movies and read books and played plenty of video games with romance options, but now, the feeling of Prompto's fingers entwined with his is just so much that he doesn't know what to do with it. Three weeks ago he hadn't even ever thought about Prompto like that -- hadn't thought about _anyone_ like that, not really, not anyone who wasn't a celebrity in any case -- and now he feels like it's a wonder that he hasn't been in love with Prompto for _years_.

They come up to one of the food stalls and get in line. Prompto's fingers twitch, and Noctis tightens his hand reactively. "Uh, Noct?" Prompto says. "You can let go now, I'm not gonna get lost in the crowd."

Noctis's heart sinks and he lets go of Prompto's hand. "Oh, uh, sorry," he mutters.

"You okay dude? You've been acting kind of weird the last couple days."

"No, I'm fine, everything's fine," Noctis says quickly, noting the concerned wrinkle between Prompto's brows. "You uh, you want the spicy skewers, right?"

"Yeah!" Prompto says, and everything is fine again. "Man I'm so hungry I could eat like, ten skewers."

Noctis laughs. "Me too. Maybe we should order twenty."

They don't order twenty skewers. They get four each, and sit at one of the nearby tables to eat them. When they get back to the hotel that night, and they're all getting ready for bed, Noctis gets a text from Ignis.

_[Ignis] how did it go?_

Noctis sighs and lays back on the bed, rolling over so that Prompto won't be able to see his screen.

_[Noctis] it didn't_  
_[Noctis] he thought it was just friends going to get dinner together_  
_[Noctis] I tried to hold his hand_  
_[Noctis] he thought I just didn't want to lose him in the crowd_

Ignis snorts, and Gladio asks, "What's so funny?"

Clearing his throat, Ignis says, "It's nothing, just, ah, cooking memes."

_[Noctis] -_-_  
_[Noctis] what am I supposed to do??_

_[Ignis] maybe you should just talk to him about how you feel_

Noctis frowns. He's always had a lot of feelings, but he's never been the best at talking about them. He'd rather show someone that he cares than tell them the same.

_[Noctis] can't you talk to him for me?_

_[Ignis] Noctis, you are a grown man and the King of Lucis. I think you can tell Prompto that you have feelings for him by yourself._

Sighing, Noctis turns off his phone and pulls up the covers. Clearly Ignis isn't going to be any help.

***

_Talk to him_ , Ignis said, so when they get to Caem, Noctis agrees to go with Prompto to take some photos. They sit up on the cliffs and watch the sunset, listening to the roar of the ocean and the click of the camera shutter. It's actually . . . pretty romantic. Noctis lays down in the rough grass, and after a minute, Prompto lays down next to him.

_You can do this_ , Noctis tells himself. _It's not like he doesn't feel the same._

"Hey, Prompto?"

"Yeah?"

"I uh. This whole trip, you know, you've always been there to cheer me up when everything's gone wrong. You're . . . you're a really good guy. I really like being with you." He takes a deep breath. That wasn't so bad, was it? It's out, he's said it.

Prompto laughs, light and airy. "Aw, you know I love you too, bro," he says. "Besties forever, right?"

". . . yeah, right," Noctis replies with a sigh.

***

"Ignis, you gotta help me," Noctis says, when Prompto's gone off to take pictures of flowers with Iris and the rest of them are hanging out in the guest room. He's pretty sure Ignis has already filled Gladio in based on the way Gladio's been smirking at him lately, so there's no need to keep any secrets.

"With Prompto? Did you talk to him about how you feel as I suggested?"

"I did!" Noctis groans and flings himself onto one of the beds. "He thought I meant platonically."

Gladio bursts out laughing. "The two of you are ridiculous. Just kiss him already, he'll get the picture."

"Just like that?" Noctis throws a pillow at Gladio's head, but Gladio knocks it out of the air before it hits him.

"Maybe you could go somewhere alone with him, tell him again how you feel, and _then_ kiss him," Ignis offers.

"I don't even know how to kiss someone, I'd probably smash our noses together or something."

Gladio laughs again. "If you do, then you can just give it another try. I don't think he'll mind. Just think about whatever you were planning to do with Lady Lunafreya at your wedding and do the same thing."

"Yes, channel your inner Prince Charming," Ignis adds.

"I hate you both."

***

Noctis decides to go fishing, and Ignis and Gladio make the worst, most transparent excuses about why they can't come along. He tries to focus on the fish, and not on Prompto sitting next to him taking pictures. It's slow, so they're both sitting at the end of the jetty, feet dangling over the edge. Noctis twitches the lure, and Prompto takes photos of the scenery; the weather is good, the company is good, and for a while, that's enough.

But eventually, Prompto puts down his camera and just stares out over the water, and Noctis can't help turning to look. Prompto's lips are curved into a smile, his eyes wide and sparkling with the reflection of the water, and even the way he taps his fingers on the boards of the jetty makes Noctis's heart ache.

"Hey, Prompto," he says. His breath catches in his throat when Prompto turns and their gazes meet, and he reaches up to cup Prompto's cheek with one hand.

"Oh, do I have something on my face?" Prompto asks, and then two things happen at the same time: Prompto reaches to wipe at his cheek, catching Noctis's hand instead, and there's a sharp tug on his other hand as a massive fish bites the lure.

Noctis loses his balance and starts to fall. He's still holding Prompto's face, tugging him down, and there's a mad scramble as they grab at each other before the fish tugs again and both of them tumble off the side of the jetty into the water.

At least he has the presence of mind to banish his fishing rod back to the armiger before it gets lost at sea. When they resurface, Prompto is laughing. "Maybe that's enough fishing for today, huh? Iggy's gonna be so pissed our clothes are covered in saltwater. At least the 'bath' cleaned up my face, right?"

Noctis's face contorts in some kind of half-smile, half-frown that ends up looking utterly ridiculous. "You look like an angry, wet cat, dude," Prompto says, and then he's tugging Noctis back up onto the shore, and Noctis sighs and gives up.

***

They head for Hammerhead late in the afternoon to get the decals they traded their carrots for put on the car. Prompto spends the whole drive excitedly chattering about how much he's looking forward to seeing Cindy. Noctis spends it pretending to nap so that he won't have to fake enthusiasm. He's almost drifting off for real when his phone buzzes.

_[Gladio] thought you and prompto were gonna get together_  
_[Gladio] what's with all the cindy talk?_

He glares at Gladio sitting next to him, and Gladio just raises an eyebrow.

_[Noctis] I give up_  
_[Noctis] guess he cares more about Cindy anyway_

_[Gladio] doubt it_  
_[Gladio] did you kiss him yet?_

Noctis rolls his eyes and pointedly turns off his phone.

When they arrive, Cindy is tinkering in the garage. "Howdy!" she says, smiling widely. Noctis steals a glance at Prompto, only to find him entirely focused on Cindy. He looks away quickly, and tells himself he has no right to be jealous.

When they've handed over the decals and described where they want them, Cindy gets into the Regalia and pulls it into the garage. Prompto says, "Man, I love how passionate Cindy gets when she talks about cars. She's the best, right Noct?"

Noctis replies with a grunt, and turns away. Maybe he'll head into the shop and see if there's anything good for sale today -- whatever lets him avoid having to listen to Prompto talk about Cindy anymore.

But Prompto follows him, and catches him just outside the shop. "Dude, what's up with you? You've been acting super weird lately."

"It's nothing," he says, avoiding Prompto's eyes.

"It doesn't seem like nothing," Prompto replies, stepping in front of Noctis so he can't push past into the shop. "You've been acting weirder and weirder and you've been like, extra grouchy ever since we got in the car today. Are you mad at me for something?"

Noctis's head jerks up. "No, I'm not-- I'm not mad, I'm just--"

"Just what?"

Noctis sighs and rubs the back of his head with one hand. "You remember that night we were talking up on the roof in Longwythe?"

Prompto's cheeks color slightly, and he says, "Uh, yeah, what about it?"

"You're so into Cindy, but I . . . I thought you said you had a crush on me." He shrugs, not really sure what else to say. At least he can watch while Prompto's face gets redder. It's really cute, actually, though he's trying not to think it.

"Yeah, duh, but you're like-- Cindy's out of my league, but you're on a whole different level dude. Figured I should at least try to go for someone I might have a chance with. It's not like you're ever gonna feel the same way, so . . ."

Noctis blinks at him as Prompto trails off and looks down at the ground. He's blushing like crazy; Noctis wants to kiss every inch of his cherry-red face. _Just kiss him,_ Gladio had said, and so he grabs Prompto's face with both hands and smashes their lips together before he can come up with another way to misinterpret it.

Their noses collide; their teeth clack together. It's a terrible kiss, he can tell even though it's his first. But he holds it for a long moment, then lets go, stepping back and looking to see what Prompto's reaction is going to be.

"Did-- Did you just-- Am I dreaming, or--?"

"Can I kiss you again?" Noctis asks. "Or maybe you could kiss me, because I have no idea how to do this."

Prompto laughs, a startled huff of air, and then Noctis leans in again and Prompto meets him halfway. It's better this time -- Prompto tilts his head, and the pressure is softer. Their noses don't bump, their teeth stay out of the way, and Noctis's whole body feels hot and tingly and shivery with how _good_ it is and how much he wants this.

"Yeah, you can-- you can kiss me anytime," Prompto breathes when they part.

"Maybe all the time?" Noctis offers.

"Definitely all the time."

A slow clap startles them both, and Noctis turns to find Gladio applauding, with Ignis looking smug by his side. He flips them both off and kisses Prompto again.

**Author's Note:**

> One hundred million thanks, as always, to the best beta on the planet, [misswonderheart](http://misswonderheart.tumblr.com)! Thanks also to [introductory](http://archiveofourown.org/users/introductory) and [asidian](http://archiveofourown.org/users/asidian) for helping me come up with Noct's failed attempts at asking Prompto to be his boyfriend.
> 
> Find me on tumblr [@marmolita](http://marmolita.tumblr.com)!


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